Missouri Western State University’s Double Standards

Almost all women will experience a point in their life when rules they have to follow are bent for the men around them. It will happen, and it is not fair. Nevertheless, you should always stand up for yourself.
I have already come across this many times in my short lifetime, but it has never been as evident as it was when I was an eager freshman at Missouri Western State University trying to get the most out of my first year. I immediately became involved in several clubs and organizations on and off campus because I knew before I had ever stepped foot here I wanted to be involved to the fullest extent and make a difference at my school. Eventually, I was appointed as a Justice to the Judicial Branch of our Student Government Association where I served on two committees: External Relations and Health and Safety.
When I interviewed for the position of Justice, the interview went better than I expected and I was told I should apply to be student governor. Taking this recommendation seriously, I did a lot of research on what it takes to get this position and here is what I needed:
First, a 3.0 GPA, which was not a problem for me.
Second, have your state senator vouch for you. I was eager to serve in this esteemed position, so I took the extra step of reaching out to my state senator, who I already knew through my political activities. He helped me go one more step on this path by writing me a letter of recommendation.
Finally, be one of three names chosen to be sent to the governor of Missouri. I did not feel this would be an issue because there were so few applications submitted for this position.
Through my research on what I needed, I also learned that the last woman to hold this position was twenty years ago. She held it in 1998, the same year I was born.
The deadline to apply to be student governor was Nov. 7. I turned my application before the deadline with everything I needed. I had a strong resume and plenty of letters of recommendation from family friends, former teachers, former principals, my state representative, and my state senator. These are the people who invested so much in me throughout my life; they saw the potential not even I could see at times and brought me to where I am. My heart and soul went into it.
Only two students, including myself, applied, and the other person who applied later decided they no longer wanted to pursue this opportunity.
I waited for those conducting the selection process to recognize the fact I applied and to start the interview process with my school and the Governor, but months passed and I still had not heard anything.
When I returned to school in January, I was surprised to see flyers around my campus encouraging people to apply to be student governor. The deadline passed and one other qualified woman submitted her application. These two applications were not good enough for my university, so there was a third and final deadline. Only one other applicant came in, a man who was told privately on Jan. 30, 2018 that he did not need to meet the 3.0 GPA requirement. I was shocked.
Like many women in situations like this, I remained silent about my frustration and only mentioned it briefly to the president of my university during my interview on March 1, 2018. I wanted him to know not only was I the first to apply, but I was also very well qualified. March 15, 2018, I was informed that I was one of the finalists for the position and that my name would be passed on to the governor’s office.
I was almost certain one of the two qualified women would be chosen. I was soon proven wrong.
I regret not speaking up immediately, because this double standard is not acceptable on my college campus or anywhere else. The school did not even extend the courtesy of informing me that I was not chosen. Instead, I found out through a Facebook post.
Out of eighteen people who have served as student governor since the position was established in 1985, only three have been women. It stands out as a noteworthy coincidence that during the period in which these women were chosen, Missouri Western had its only female university president that served from 1983 to 2000.
To make matters worse, before school started again in the fall I received an email from the new Student Body President. In this email, he offered me a position in his cabinet as Director of External Relations. I wouldn’t usually get upset about an opportunity to serve my school and community, but this was different. It was different because it is the position previously held by the new student governor. The email included a line stating that it was “a blessing in disguise.” I chose to ignore the email because I was insulted by their lack of consideration.
I am choosing to speak up about this instance because I want the school to do better and for other women to not have to deal with these injustices.
This incident is only a glimpse of the barriers women face when applying for leadership positions. It goes beyond whether or not any given candidate is qualified. It is certainly not the fault of the candidate they picked. I am confident he will do a good job and make a difference. But the fact that the school bent the rules to favor a male candidate while seemingly entirely overlooking two highly qualified female candidates is an egregious instance of the school committing gender bias and perpetuating the double standards that women face every day.
There is still a lot of work to be done in the fight for gender equality, but you can count on me fighting every day. Please join me in this fight.
Rachel R. Gonzalez







